


The Miles Of Forever

by Oaklin



Series: Forever Everything [40]
Category: Canadian Professional Wrestling International, Professional Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Bad Friendship, Kayfabe Compliant, Kevin happens, M/M, Swearing, also regular angst, and then, and then very abruptly NOT anything romantic in the slightest, asshole!kevin, confused!Beef, holy shit the regular angst, obligatory Kevin Steen warning, oh the melodrama, sharp sudden shifts of tone, so even worse friendship basically, stealth angst, stealth romance, upset!Sami
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-11
Updated: 2017-03-11
Packaged: 2018-10-02 12:42:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10218338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oaklin/pseuds/Oaklin
Summary: Sometimes life isn't fair.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hello hello!
> 
> So. Just so you know, this finally brings us back, full circle, in case that wasn't blatantly obvious. This part takes place basically parallel to The Call of Forever. You will see what I mean as the fic goes on. Don't worry, in the future I will try to work out a less confusing way of doing these little mini-series-within-the-series-as-a-whole thingies. This time, it just kinda snuck up on me.
> 
> And no, before you ask, the mildly angsty, somewhat petulant ending to this is definitely not me channeling my emotions about Fastlane into the scene. Okay, it might be, but in my defense I didn't even really know that I was annoyed about the whole thing. It feels fine. Mostly. I get it.
> 
> *salty, butthurt grumbling about a story line I knew they were shooting for the moment Goldberg showed up*
> 
> That's better. I may, at some point, do something like Forever from the Other Side of Fear, except more focused on Kevin's crushing defeats and less on his triumphs (although, Forever from the Other Side of Fear had a few defeats, but this time I'll get to rant and rave like the belligerent asshole that I am about how unfair it is when Kevin isn't The King Of Everything and The Holder Of All The Shiny Belts that his little black heart desires) That will have to wait though, as this week was WAY too chaotic for me to do anything about Fastlane. I will need a lot of time if I'm going to be writing Kevin losing a match.
> 
> You know how he gets.

“Beef!” Sami whispers, though his volume doesn’t really need to be kept low at this particular moment. It makes him feel better, however, to be as silent as possible, given that he is unsure how allowed he is to be snooping around Gino’s yard this way.

“Fuuu-!”

Sami winces, taking a few startled steps back, before heading toward the mumbled cursing, hurrying toward the distressed sound. He draws up short, blinking at the scene before him in shock.

Beef turns as best he can, twisting around in the mess he is tangled in, looking supremely put out as he does so.

“Don’t just stand there! Help me!” He barks, face turning an interesting shade of red as he huffs in irate discomfort.

Sami stands there, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, curling his fists at his sides, holding in a desperate breath. Beef glares at him, biting out something that filters through Sami’s ears as pure white noise as the lack of oxygen makes Sami light headed.

-Don't-

-That is so fucking mean-

“Pffft-”

“Fuck you Sami! Help me you bitch!” Beef rages, flailing wildly in the confines of the cloth he had smuggled with him, the fabric visibly tightening around him as he swears loudly.

Sami gulps in a few breaths, reaching up to slap a hand over his traitorous mouth, trying to stifle his giggles. Unable to fully stop his chuckling, he non the less moves forward, sparing a somewhat teary eyed glance around as he does so.

“Geez. Easy Beef. I don’t know how pissed at us Gino’s gonna be if he finds up snooping around in his backyard.” Sami stutters breathlessly, reaching out and grasping the fabric, giving it an experimental pull.

Beef hisses as the fabric, that Sami can now see appears to be somehow wrapped around both Beef, and the window he is half hanging out of, tightens around his body at Sami’s pulling.

“Ow! Shit!” Beef screeches, pausing in his wiggling to fall back against the side of the house, breathing heavily and looking wiped enough that it makes Sami concerned.

His laughter abruptly and wholeheartedly dried up, Sami stops tugging on the mess of fabric wrapped around his friend and takes a step back, planting a hand on his chin as he contemplates the problem at hand.

“Okay, so, are you stuck to the curtain or the window? Sami asks, eyeing the predicament with careful attention to detail, though there is little to see beyond a mess of tattered sheet, curtain and angry, puffy Beef.

Beef makes a distressed noise in the back of his throat, looking at Sami with pleading eyes, “I heard Kevin yelling something and I got freaked out, because I thought he was screaming at me. Unfortunately, I was halfway through the window when the bastard started screaming about something or other, so when I panicked, I lost my balance and fell.”

Beef takes a breath as he attempts to move again, this time his movements much slower, as he shifts around inside his cocoon of polyester, his body sliding along the wall slightly at he tries to find a way to move that doesn’t tighten the already strangling hold the cloth has on him.

“Of course, because my luck today is just in the shitter, Steen wasn’t yelling at me at all. He was bitching out somebody in the garage. By the time I figured that out, I was hanging halfway out the window, wrapped up in the shit that was supposed to help us save the day and put that asshole Daniels’ in his place once and for all.”

Sami bites down on a retort, declining his own internal urge to suggest that Daniels’ wasn’t actually the cause of any of this, and that is was Beef and Sami’s own incompetence that had created the situation in which they now resided.

-Hey-

The truth is the truth.

(Should have just stayed home.)

-Or told Beef that trying to trap a phone thief was a stupid idea-

Sami sighs deeply, realizing that this whole day has been nothing but a ridiculous chain of events that has had no real purpose other than drive them all crazy and get them all, both metaphorically and now physically, wrapped up in trouble.

“Okay, so maybe Joe was right.” Sami mutters under his breath.

Beef flings his body sideways, grunting as he collides with Sami. Sami squawks and flails out wildly, grasping desperately at the gutter running down the side of the building for stability as he stumbles and teeters in place. Once Sami has his balance back somewhat, he turns a disgruntled look on Beef, making a face at the other wrestler.

Beef puffs loudly, wincing and trying to roll his shoulders, though the very motion seems painful, so he stops with a grimace.

“Ow. Shit.”

Sami sniffs, resisting the urge to sink and elbow into the tightly cocooned side of his exhausting companion.

“Serves you right. I’m trying to help you. Don’t body slam the people trying to untangle you from the mess you got yourself in.” Sami says, poking Beef to punctuate his point.

Beef rolls his eyes, clearly having to strain, as he twists around to glare at Sami, “You are a jerk! I was telling a riveting story of my trials and tribulations, and you just start spacing out about another one of your angsty fuck buddies. Rude.”

Sami opens his mouth, annoyed that Beef would think a side slam was an appropriate response to one moment of self reflection, but a thought occurs to him midway through the formation of his first syllable.

“Th- Ah.” Sami reaches up, scratching uncomfortably at the back of his neck and shooting Beef a sheepish look, “... I did _actually_ ask you a question.”

Beef’s glare softens and he lets out a sigh, puffing out his bottom lip and directing the air upward until it floofs the growing golden bangs Beef has recently been sporting.

“Yeah. And then you didn’t fucking _listen_ to the **answer** of **_the question you asked_**. Jerk.”

Sami looks down, contrite, feeling bad that he had gotten wrapped up in his own irritation at the day, while Beef was clearly stuck and in pain.

“Sorry. Today has been- doesn’t matter,” Sami shakes the excuse off, letting go of the gutter and walking back to Beef’s side, reaching down to try and slip a finger between the thick layers of fabric wrapped around Beef.

“You do seem to be stuck to both the window and the side of the house,” Sami says, bending down to get a closer look, “Some of the siding is loose, and the curtain looks like it got caught in between the slats.”

Beef strains his neck, turning his head with a grunt of discomfort, squinting down awkwardly at the mess of textiles, “Yeah, I thought as much. Don’t suppose you’ve got a fucking pair of scissors stashed up your ass, do you my friend?”

Sami chuckles, dropping his hand from Beef’s side to pull at his own sleeves, trying to put together a solution in his mind.

“Right. I remember my dad had this whole thing about the proper way to untie a tangled knot- I had trouble with my laces when I was young- but I suppose just cutting you free would work.”

Sami cocks his head at the mess before him, “Although, to get you severed, I think we will need something more than scissors. Pruning shears is more like-”

Sami looks up abruptly and blinks, him and Beef sharing an incredulous look for a moment.

Beef groans loudly, falling back against the building and looking skyward with a supremely aggravated look on his face, “We are so fucking **dumb**.”

Sami coughs into a fist, taking a few steps backwards as he feels a flash of embarrassment at their own stupidity rise to his cheeks.

“I’m going to go take a look- yeah. Be right back, Beef.”

Beef snorts as Sami turns away, and Sami can’t help the little fond smile that curls across his lips as he rounds the corner toward the garage door.

“Yeah, sure thing Sami. I’ll trying not to fucking run away while your gone.”

Sami shakes his head with a smile, as he strides over to the garage. Belatedly, he glances around, a thrill of concern flooding him as remembers that he is still skulking around some else’s property, technically without their permission.

“Maybe I’ll get away with it on the grounds that everyone else is here?” Sami mumbles to himself, reaching the tiny side door to the garage and slipping through as quickly as possible.

-Don't think G will let you off with that particular excuse-

(Gino never lets anyone get off with anything)

“Although, I’m pretty sure that there are several people here that would say other wise.” Sami grumbles, feeling around and blinking rapidly in the pitch blackness of the garage.

-Most of the people that were ‘getting off' already left-

-Probably to ‘get off’ some more-

(bitter)

Sami sneezes into the dank, dusty room, rubbing at his cheeks and flailing for some semblance of balance, reluctant to move forward in the darkness, for fear of crashing into the many shelves and boxes Gino has stacked and piled in the large room. Shifting his stance, he feels around his general vicinity until he finds a solid surface. More feeling around tells him that the surface is in fact a table of some kind. He almost sobs in happiness, glad to finally have a guide through the abyss of lightless chaos he has found himself in.

Moving slowly and carefully, Sami works his way along the table, scooting along it with his back pressed against the surprisingly comforting splintered surface. As he shuffles along, his eyes slowly adjust to the darkness, and he begins to see more and more of his immediate surroundings.

“Good, now I can actually start _looking_ for-”

Sami clamps his mouth shut at a commotion emanating from across the garage. He looks up, squinting into the darkness. His eyes are still struggling to adjust, but as he rounds a large shelf packed with what appear to be spare ring ropes, Sami finally sees the soft glow of light radiating from around the next bend.

Sami blinks some more, his eyes protesting loudly at even more rapid changes in the light levels. He doesn’t want to move closer, for fear of being spotted, so he opts to not go and investigate, instead starting to slowly shuffle in the other direction, half turning to go back the way he came.

Hopefully, there will be a pair of pruning shears somewhere on the shelf with the ring ropes.

Before Sami can completely turn around though, he spots a bucket full of tools in the cast off of the light. It is far too close to the end of the shelf, and therefore will potentially get him spotted.

(bad idea)

-Beef _needs_ us-

Sami tries to be as quiet as he can, shuffling down the aisle quickly but silently, keeping all of his extremities tucked close, so as not to knock anything over or make any unnecessary sounds.

Sami almost gasps out loud, but manages to get a hand up to muffle the sound before it rings out too much. Cautiously, he slowly lowers his hand, glancing around tentatively, even though he already knows that there is nothing to see. He can still hear the muffled voices, could probably make out what they are saying if he tired, but he resists the urge to eavesdrop.

Instead he reaches forward, wrapping his fingers around the handle of the shears he had bee hoping to find. They are buried in the bucket however, and he is afraid to pull them out and send all the other tools in the bucket crashing to the floor. Wiggling them experimentally, he reaches down with his other hand, trying to silently lift the other objects up so he can quietly slip the shears out and make his getaway before he is noticed.

Sami has just about succeeded in pulling the shears free, when the voices behind the shelf, flowing toward him like the soft glow of the only light in the room, very suddenly get louder. He flinches and freezes, closing his eyes and waiting for his fate, knowing that he has been caught.

“Fuck you, you old piece of shit! It's not my goddamn job to book your raggedy-ass shows for you. Do your own mother fucking leg work."

Sami eases up as a somewhat wheezy voice answers Kevin's belligerence calmly, if a little exasperated.

“I think, you just don't want to do any work to keep your gold, boy."

A disdainful snort echoes through the garage, derisive and annoyed.

“Yeah, like anyone **here** would stand a chance against me."

There is a loud clanging sound, and Sami catches on just in time to pull the shears out a little more while the much louder sound can cover up the racket he is making. He pauses a bit after, but Kevin and Gino don't seem to know he is there. Sami breathes a sigh of relief and hopes that they will make more noises so that he can leave.

( **Really** uncomfortable)

-Can't even _see_ them-

“Maybe I'll give you Joe then, hmm?"

Sami bites down on a smile, internally chastising himself. Still, he can practically see the disgruntled face Kevin is directing at G right now, though Sami dares not poke his head around the shelf to confirm.

“Maybe I _will_ find my own goddamn opponent then, if that is the **_best_ ** that you can come up with." Kevin sneers, though Sami can hear the little waver in his voice, buried under all the layers of scorn and faux self confidence.

Gino chuckles and Sami pulls on the shears some more as another clanging noise reverberates around the room.

“You do that. Maybe that scrawny tag-along of yours. He looks like more your speed."

Sami bites his lip, rolling his eyes even as he slides the shears almost past the rim of the bucket.

He is **so close** , just a _little more_ -

“Oh, fucking give me a _break_. I wouldn't go out of my way to wrestle **_Sami_ ** for anything, much less a fucking title. I mean, if **_he_ ** had one, you are damn sure I'd take it off **_his_ ** hands in a heart beat, but let that **_ginger jobber_** anywhere near **my title?** Fuck that _shit_."

The shears slide free with one last tug. Sami blinks down at the implement in his hands, his breathing shallow and his chest tight.

(lots of dust in here)

(should probably leave)

-what-

The door creaks a bit as he closes it, but the voices are far enough away now that he isn't worried about them hearing him. If he can't hear them, they probably can't hear him.

-works out fine-

-don't _want_ to hear-

Sami takes a deep breath, his movements feeling oddly sluggish, though he is hurrying over to Beef.

Beef lights up when Sami gets there, beaming at him, though his smile is slightly tight and Sami can see a thin sheen of sweat on Beef's brow.

“What the hell took you so long Sam-ster?"

Sami shakes his head, finding his throat a bit too dry to speak. Blinking, he leans down and wordlessly begins to snip carefully at the fabric Beef is trapped in.

“Sami?" Beef leans down, blinking, his smile fading as he tries to makes eye contact. Sami feel a pang of guilt for worrying him, so he glances up, flashing Beef a smile that pulls at all the wrong facial muscles and makes him slightly queasy to execute.

Dropping the smile as a lost cause, Sami shakes his head, continuing to free Beef from his curtain prison.

“It's nothing," Sami rasps, clearing his throat when he hears how choked up he sounds, “I just- I'm heading home. I don't want to be here anymore. Do you want your phone back now or-?"

Beef doesn't say anything for a long moment. They just stand there in silence as Sami cuts away the fabric. Finally, he must have found the right spot, as when he cuts the next part away, the whole mess seems to loosen around Beef. Beef lets out a surprised noise and practically hops out of the cocoon he had just spent the better part of an hour trapped in.

“Hey! Thanks!" Beef turns, his smile bright for a minute before it dims. Sami can't be too concerned, as he is now looking at the shears with an intense feeling of dread.

-Have to go put them _back_ -

fuck.

Beef grabs his shoulders suddenly, and whatever pleading mess that is on Sami's face has Beef spinning them around, steering the both of them toward the front of the house.

“Okay, well. This was a disaster, in all the ways that are important. Who's up for some pizza and getting their ass kicked at Here Comes the Pain?"

Sami breathes in, and it isn't any easier, but the farther that they get away from the house, the less he feels like he is going to cry.

“That actually sounds really amazing right at this moment, Beef," Sami sniffs, wiping at his nose with his sleeve and clearing his throat against the lump that refuses to go away.

“I call Matt Hardy." Sami adds, sniffling again before bolting for the car, laughing hoarsely as Beef curses behind him and scrambles after him.

* * *

Beef’s steady breathing is comforting to Sami’s tired ears. He turns and smiles, reaching behind him to grab one of the throw pillows off the couch. He leans down, hanging halfway off his prone position on the couch, tucking the pillow in between the hard glass surface of the coffee table, and Beef’s sleeping face.

Beef snuffles in his sleep, but doesn’t wake up from his very uncomfortable looking sleeping position. Sami is loath to wake him up however, as Beef had seemed very exhausted from their day of chaos. He did fall asleep halfway through their third round, and Beef’s eighth slice of pizza.

Sami settles back on the couch, drawing in a shaky breath and staring at the ceiling, unable to get his brain to calm down enough to find any sleep.

Even less of an opportunity to sleep presents itself, as just moments after having that thought, Beef’s phone begins to ring.

Sami blinks, turning his head sideways, watching the phone merrily dance it’s way across the table as it chirps enthusiastically.

Oh, what he wouldn’t have given to have had _this_ happen earlier.

- ** _everything_** -

Sami reaches out slowly, catching the phone just as it jitters it’s way off the table and begins the plummet to the floor. There doesn’t seem to be enough air in the room to catch his breath, but at the same time, there is no urgency in his need to breath at the moment.

(why)

“Hey Sami.”

The words are rushed, run together, like-

(No.)

Sami breathes in, and his chest aches while his eyes burn.

(can’t)

Sami closes his eyes and listens to the dial tone, swallowing hard. The phone rings again before he has even taken his finger off the end button, but he ignores the sounds. What, just moments before, sounded cheerful and full of life now sounds angry and demanding.

Sami isn’t interested in having anything demanded of him right now.

The phone makes one last blurted, cut off chirp as Sami powers it off, the noise ending abruptly. He sighs as it slides out of his hand, makes no effort to catch it as it falls to the ground.

(Not today)

**Author's Note:**

> Man, that was fucking unnecessary as all hell.
> 
> By the way, for those unaware, Here Comes the Pain is the 2003 incarnation of that shitty video game WWE had THQ publishing for them. I figure Beef and Sami are exactly the kind of losers that would spend some of their hard earned money to play a video game of THE JOBS THAT THEY DO ON THE WEEKLY, just so they can geek out about their favs.
> 
> My tiny, beautiful nerds are so cute and lame <3


End file.
